104th Session of the Danube Commission
On December 17, 2025, the Danube Commission (DC), under the presidency of H.E. Mr. Christo Polendakov, held its 104th session in Budapest. The meeting was attended by delegations from ten Danube countries of the DC (Republic of Austria, Federal Republic of Germany, Republic of Bulgaria, Republic of Croatia, Hungary, the Republic of Moldova, Romania, Republic of Serbia, Slovak Republic and Ukraine), as well as by observer states (Czech Republic, France) and international organizations (Central Commission for the Navigation of the Rhine, Moselkommission, EC-DG MOVE).
In his opening speech, the President of the DC expressed his hope that in 2026 the organisation will continue to ”put in every effort to ensure that the Danube will be utilised only for peace, prosperity, connectivity, development, fisheries, environment, water resource […] This river is a corridor not only of economy, nature, but also of culture and solidarity, under the umbrella of peace”.
The Ukrainian delegation to the Danube Commission gave a detailed presentation on the situation on the Lower Danube, which has been affected by the Russian strikes and hybrid warfare, focusing on the threat to Danube infrastructure, navigation safety, the climate, the energy sector, the civilian population, cross-border infrastructure, and violation of Danube states’ airspace. He called on the Danube Commission to act decisively and hold Russia accountable.
Ambassador Gergő Kocsis (Hungary) briefed the delegations on the most recent discussions in the Committee for the preparation of the Diplomatic Conference regarding the regime of navigation on the Danube and its interactions with the EU institutions.
The Danube Commission has decided to strongly condemn the military actions of the Russian Federation, which violate the fundamental principles and provisions of the Belgrade Convention, and to collect data on the military actions of the Russian Federation that systematically impede free and safe navigation in the Lower Danube region in a “Register of Damage caused by Russian Military Actions in the Lower Danube Region”. The Commission also authorized its President to bring this Decision to the attention of the President of the United Nations General Assembly and to convey the Danube Commission’s readiness to cooperate with the United Nations and other organisations in developing measures to facilitate the restoration of free navigation on the Danube.
The Danube Commission took note of several reports of the DC working groups on technical, legal and financial aspects. The Work Plan of the Danube Commission for the coming year was discussed and approved by the delegations. Information on the international cooperation of the Danube Commission with partner organizations and its participation in projects funded by the European Union was provided to the participants. The financial aspects of the DCs activity were also analyzed. The delegations debated and approved the budget for 2026, including the issue of the accumulated debts of the Russian Federation, which amount to €408,510.85 for the period 2018 – December 1, 2025.
Following the implementation of the new procedure for the selection of councillors in the Secretariat, the DC decided to appoint Ms Oana Florescu as Counsellor for International Cooperation and Public Relations and Ms Maja Feketić as Counsellor for Development of Danube Navigation, for a mandate of four years.
The open part of the session concluded with an official ceremony awarding the commemorative medal “For Contribution to the Development of Danube Shipping” to Mr Andreas Bäck (Austria).
